Mac OS X-compatible HitFilm 3 Pro released for indie filmmakers

HitFilm 3 Pro, the latest video editing and visual effects software from FXHOME, is available to order from hitfilm.com for US$299.

HitFilm 3 Pro is a post-production revolution, combining editing tools, 3D compositing, 3D object rendering, a particle simulator and an expansive toolkit for advanced color correction and grading. Over 180 customizable visual effects are included plus 130 plug-ins for use in Sony Vegas, After Effects, Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro X and Motion.

New features in version 3 include a redesigned editor and interface, 3D textures for particles, auto-tracking masks, OpenFX support, 3D fractal particle shapes, 3D camera projection and professional de-noising, along with over 20 new effects, background proxying for complex VFX and a 16-bit OpenEXR pipeline.There’s a redesigned editing timeline to give users access to tools for fine control. Filmmakers can craft projects in the fast, non-linear editor and can switch between multiple 3D compositing timelines as easily as changing tabs in a web browser.

HitFilm 3 Pro includes planar tracking from Imagineer Systems, providing mask tracking and 3D camera solving. Sony Vegas users can render HitFilm projects directly on the Vegas timeline. 64-bit architecture and GPU acceleration ensures the best performance across a wide range of hardware, says Joshua Davies, FXHOME founder and CEO. There’s also fully customizable particle generation and a 3D compositing environment, with all elements rendered accurately in relation to each other, making it easy to construct incredible scenes inside a single application, he adds.

Upgrades to version 3 from previous versions of HitFilm start at $199. System requirements for the Mac are Mac OS X 10.7 or higher.